An electric power washer can make several home cleaning jobs fast and easy, and because they're affordable there's no need to spend a lot of money renting them or hiring others to do the job for you. Depending on the model you choose, you can find one for just a few hundred dollars and it can last you for years.

When you decide to buy a pressure washer, electric should be the ones you look at first. There are other types, like hydraulic and gas, but for home jobs an electric power washer is probably your best choice. The best types for home users are pretty much limited to electric and gas, with hydraulic and other types most often used for industrial purposes, but electric power washers have several benefits over gas-powered models.

An electric power washer is usually smaller and weighs much less than a gas-powered model. While this often gives the appearance of a "lightweight" tool, the ratings you need to look at on the machine are the PSI and GSM. PSI tells you how many pounds of pressure per square inch the machine will give you, while GSM tells you how many gallons of water it sprays per minute. This gives you the pressure and the density of the spray, which is all important in determining how well the machine works.

The light weight of the electric power washer makes it easier for a variety of people to use it, as does the ease of start-up with electric models. With electric power washers you plug them in and go, but gas models require special springtime maintenance and the strength to pull a starter cord. There's also the need for air filters, oil changes and draining in the wintertime, exhaust manifolds and other maintenance required of a gas model that can make them a pain.

Like with almost any piece of equipment, the pressure washer electric model is more environmentally friendly than a gas model. There are no gas fumes or carbon exhaust pushed into the air when you use an electric model. Also, gas pressure washers produce a noise that usually measures at least 85 decibels, so it's best to use these only with protective hearing devices like ear plugs or covers. Electric power washers are noisy, too. But electric models usually only measure about 78 decibels, which is below the threshold where you may need hearing protection. And when you release the trigger on the wand to stop the flow, the noise stops because the pump has stopped, where gas-powered washers offer no such relief.

Another strong check in favor of a pressure washer electric-powered rather than gas is the amount of power you can get. You can buy high PSI electric power washers, but for home jobs a number somewhere between 2000 and 2500 should be sufficient. Before purchasing a higher PSI model, you should consider the damage that a much higher pressure can do, whether in a gas or electric model, like denting siding or gouging wood (as well as the personal injury it can cause) especially if you're inexperienced using a gas or electric power washer.

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